Substrate transfer mechanism and substrate transferring method

ABSTRACT

A substrate transfer mechanism includes: an arm base main body provided with a first driver; a lift configured to move up and down the arm base main body; a first arm extending transversely from a lower side of the arm base main body, and having a tip end that pivots around a vertical axis with respect to the arm base main body by the first driver; a second arm extending transversely from an upper side of the tip end of the first arm, and having a tip end that pivots around a vertical axis with respect to the first arm along with the pivoting of the first arm; and a substrate holder provided on an upper side of the tip end of the second arm, and configured to rotate around a vertical axis with respect to the second arm.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 17/679,352, filed on Feb. 24, 2022, which claimspriority from Japanese Patent Application Nos. 2021-029104 and2021-144921, filed on Feb. 25, 2021 and Sep. 6, 2021, respectively, withthe Japan Patent Office, all of which are incorporated herein in theirentireties by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a substrate transfer mechanism and asubstrate transferring method.

BACKGROUND

A substrate processing apparatus used for manufacturing semiconductordevices includes, for example, a plurality of processing modules thatprocesses a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter, referred to as a wafer)which is a substrate. In the substrate processing apparatus, a substratetransfer mechanism is provided to deliver the wafer to each processingmodule.

Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2008-028134 discloses amulti-joint substrate transfer mechanism called a selective complianceassembly robot arm (SCARA). The substrate transfer mechanism includes aplurality of arms (link bodies) 41a to 41c that are connected to eachother in an order in the direction from the proximal end to the tip end,and the arms are stacked in the order of 41a, 41b, and 41c.

SUMMARY

According to the present disclosure, a substrate transfer mechanism fortransferring a substrate to each of a plurality of stacked processingmodules that process the substrate includes: an arm base main bodyprovided with a first driver; a lift configured to move up and down thearm base main body; a first arm extending transversely from a lower sideof the arm base main body, and having a tip end that pivots around avertical axis with respect to the arm base main body by the firstdriver; a second arm extending transversely from an upper side of thetip end of the first arm, and having a tip end that pivots around avertical axis with respect to the first arm along with the pivoting ofthe first arm; and a substrate holder provided on an upper side of thetip end of the second arm, and configured to rotate around a verticalaxis with respect to the second arm.

The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be inany way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments,and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and featureswill become apparent by reference to the drawings and the followingdetailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a substrate processing apparatus including asubstrate transfer mechanism according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the substrate processing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a processing block of the substrate processingapparatus.

FIG. 4 is an entire perspective view of the substrate transfermechanism.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the substrate transfer mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional side view of the substrate transfermechanism.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the substrate transfer mechanism.

FIG. 8 is a horizontal plan view illustrating a portion of the substratetransfer mechanism.

FIG. 9 is a schematic vertical sectional front view illustrating aportion of the substrate transfer mechanism.

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating an operation of arms of the substratetransfer mechanism.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a processing block of a substrate processingapparatus according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a side view of the processing block according to the secondembodiment.

FIG. 13 is a horizontal sectional plan view of a substrate transfermechanism provided in the apparatus of the second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the substrate transfer mechanism.

FIG. 15 is a horizontal sectional plan view illustrating a modificationof the substrate transfer mechanism.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. The illustrativeembodiments described in the detailed description, drawings, and claimsare not meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, andother changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope ofthe subject matter presented here.

First Embodiment

A substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described as an example of asubstrate processing apparatus including an embodiment of a substratetransfer mechanism of the present disclosure, with reference to thehorizontal sectional plan view of FIG. 1 and the vertical sectionalfront view of FIG. 2 . In the substrate processing apparatus 1, acarrier block D1, a first processing block D2, and a second processingblock D3 are arranged in this order linearly in the horizontaldirection. In the descriptions herein below, the arrangement directionof the blocks D1 to D3 will be referred to as a Y direction, the side ofthe carrier block D1 in the Y direction will be referred to as a +Yside, and the side of the second processing block D3 in the Y directionwill be referred to as a −Y side. The traverse direction orthogonal tothe Y direction will be referred to as an X direction, and when the sideof the carrier block D1 relative to the X direction is viewed as theleft side, and the side of the second processing block D3 relative tothe X direction is viewed as the right side, the front side will bereferred to as a +X side, and the rear side will be referred to as a −Xside.

Each of the first processing block D2 and the second processing block D3is vertically partitioned into two blocks. The lower and upper blocks ofthe partitioned first processing block D2 will be referred to as a firstlower processing block D21 and a first upper processing block D22,respectively. The lower and upper blocks of the partitioned secondprocessing block D3 will be referred to as a second lower processingblock D31 and a second upper processing block D32, respectively. A waferW is transferred in the order of the carrier block D1→the first lowerprocessing block D21→the second lower processing block D31→the secondupper processing block D32→the first upper processing block D22→thecarrier block D1. The wafer W is transferred in this way so that anunderlayer film, an interlayer film, and a resist film are formed andstacked in this order on the wafer W. After each film is formed, thewafer W is subjected to a heating processing.

Hereinafter, each block will be described. The carrier block D1 performscarry in/out of the wafer W with respect to a carrier C configured tostore the wafer W. The side surface of a housing 11 of the carrier blockD1 on the +Y side protrudes toward the +Y side to form three tiers, andthe tiers are configured as supports 12, 13, and 14, respectively, frombelow. Each of the supports 12 to 14 is provided with four stages forcarriers C, and the four stages are arranged in the X direction. The twostages of each of the supports 12 and 13 on the +X side are configuredas stages 15 on which the carriers C are placed for carrying in/out thewafers W with respect to the apparatus. The other stages are configuredas stages 16 for carrying in/out the carriers C with respect to thesubstrate processing apparatus 1 or temporarily retreating the carriersC when the carriers C is not able to be moved to and placed onmovement/placement destinations. A movement/placement mechanism 17 isprovided to perform the movement/placement of carriers C between thestages 15 and 16.

A transfer region 21 for the wafer W is formed in the housing 11 of thecarrier block D1. Transfer mechanisms 22 and 23 are provided on the +Xside and the −X side of the transfer region 21, respectively, and amodule stacked body T1 is interposed between the transfer mechanisms 22and 23 in a plan view. The module stacked body T1 is configured in themanner that a transfer module TRS on which the wafer W is temporarilyplaced, and a temperature adjustment module SCPL that adjusts thetemperature of the placed wafer W overlap with each other in thevertical direction. Further, a hydrophobization processing module 25 isprovided on the −X side relative to the transfer mechanism 23 in thetransfer region 21 to perform the hydrophobization processing of thewafer W.

Next, the first processing block D2 will be described. The front side ofthe first processing block D2 is vertically partitioned into eightsections, which will be referred to as E1 to E8, respectively, frombelow to above. The lower sections E1 to E4 are included in the firstlower processing block D21, and the upper sections E5 to E8 are includedin the first upper processing block D22.

The first upper processing block D22 will be described with reference toFIG. 3 which is a vertical sectional side view. The first upperprocessing block D22 includes an angular housing 20 that partitions thefirst upper processing block D22 from the other blocks. The sections E5to E8 described above or processing modules and a transfer mechanism 4Bto be described later are provided in the housing 20.

The sections E5 to E8 are provided with resist film formation modules31, respectively, that form a resist film by applying a resist as achemical liquid. Accordingly, the resist film formation modules 31 are aplurality of stacked processing modules. A transfer region 33 for thewafer W is provided behind the sections E5 to E8 to extend in the Ydirection. Heating modules 34 are provided as processing modules behindthe transfer region 33. Seven heating modules 34 are vertically stackedto form a stacked body, and two stacked bodies are arranged side by sidein the Y direction. The plurality of heating modules 34 arrangedvertically in two rows may be collectively referred to as a heatingmodule group 35.

The heating module group 35 and the resist film formation modules 31 ofthe sections E5 to E8 face each other with the transfer region 33interposed therebetween. The transfer mechanism 4B is provided in thetransfer region 33 to deliver the wafer W to/from the resist filmformation modules 31 and the heating modules 34. Accordingly, thestacked processing modules share the transfer mechanism 4B. The detailedconfiguration of the transfer mechanism 4B will be described later.

The first lower processing block D21 of the first processing block D2has the same configuration as that of the first upper processing blockD22, except that the sections E1 to E4 are provided with chemical liquidapplication modules that apply a chemical liquid for forming theunderlayer film. Next, the second processing block D3 (the second upperprocessing block D32 and the second lower processing block D31) will bedescribed, and since the second processing block D3 has substantiallythe same configuration as that of the first processing block D2, onlydifferences will be described. The sections E5 to E8 of the second upperprocessing block D32 are provided with chemical liquid applicationmodules for forming the interlayer film. The sections E1 to E4 of thesecond lower processing block D31 is not provided with chemical liquidapplication modules, and are provided with only the heating modules 34as processing modules in the same manner as the other processing blocks.FIG. 2 illustrates the transfer mechanisms that correspond to thetransfer mechanisms 4B provided in the first lower processing block D21,the second lower processing block D31, and the second upper processingblock D32, as 4A, 4C, and 4D, respectively.

TRS11 and TRS12 are provided at the ends of the transfer regions 33 ofthe second lower processing block D31 and the second upper processingblock D32, respectively, on the +Y side. The TRS11 and the TRS12 overlapeach other in a plan view. Further, an upward/downward movement andplacement mechanism 36 is provided to move up and down along the end ofthe transfer region 33 of each block on the +Y side, and transfer thewafer W between the TRS11 and the TRS12. The upward/downward movementand placement mechanism 36 includes support columns 37 that extendvertically on the rear side of the transfer region 33, a horizontalrotary shaft 38 that is movable up and down along the support columns 37and extends in the Y direction, and a holder 39 that extends in thedirection orthogonal to the extending direction of the rotary shaft 38to adsorb and hold the back surface of the wafer W. For the convenienceof illustration, FIG. 2 illustrates that the rotary shaft 38 extends inthe X direction. By the rotation of the rotary shaft 38, the tip end ofthe holder 39 faces upward while moving up and down between the TRS11and the TRS12, and faces sideward while delivering the wafer W to eachof the TRS11 and the TRS12. Further, SCPLs are provided in the secondlower processing block D31 and the second upper processing block D32,respectively, to overlap with the TRS11 and the TRS12. The TRS11, theTRS12, and the SCPLs make up a module stacked body T2.

The substrate processing apparatus 1 further includes a controller 10(see FIG. 1 ). The controller 10 is configured with a computer, andincludes a program, a memory, and a CPU. The program includes a stepgroup for performing a series of operations in the substrate processingapparatus 1 to be described later. According to the program, thecontroller 10 outputs a control signal to each unit of the substrateprocessing apparatus 1, so that the operation of each unit iscontrolled. Specifically, the transfer of the wafer W by the transfermechanisms 4A to 4D and the upward/downward movement and placementmechanism 36, and the operation of each of the processing modules suchas the heating modules 34 are controlled. The program described above isinstalled in the controller 10 by being stored in a storage medium suchas a compact disk, a hard disk, or a DVD.

Next, the transfer route of the wafer W in the substrate processingapparatus 1 will be described. The wafer W of the carrier C on the stage15 is transferred in the order of the transfer mechanism 22→the TRS ofthe module stacked body T1→the transfer mechanism 23→thehydrophobization processing module 25→the SCPL of the module stackedbody T1. Then, the wafer W is taken into the first lower processingblock D21 by the transfer mechanism 4A, transferred in the order of thechemical liquid application module→the heating module 34 so that theunderlayer film is formed. Then, the wafer W is transferred to the SCPLof the module stacked body T2, transferred to the heating module 34 bythe transfer mechanism 4C of the second lower processing block D31 to befurther subjected to the heating processing, and then, transferred tothe TRS 11.

Then, the wafer W is transferred to the TRS12 of the second upperprocessing block D32 by the upward/downward movement and placementmechanism 36, transferred in the order of the SCPL of the module stackedbody T2→the chemical liquid application module→the heating module 34 bythe transfer mechanism 4D so that the interlayer film is formed, andtransferred to the SCPL of the module stacked body T2. Subsequently, thewafer W is taken into the first upper processing block D22 by thetransfer mechanism 4B, transferred in the order of the resist filmformation module 31→the heating module 34 so that the resist film isformed, and transferred in this state to the TRS of the module stackedbody T1. Then, the wafer W is transferred in the order of the transfermechanism 23→the TRS of the module stacked body T1→the transfermechanism 22 to be returned to the carrier C.

Next, the transfer mechanisms 4A to 4D which are substrate transfermechanisms will be described. Since the transfer mechanisms 4A to 4Dhave the same configuration, the transfer mechanism 4B in the firstupper processing block D22 will be described as a representative withreference to the perspective view of FIG. 4 , the front view of FIG. 5 ,and the vertical sectional side view of FIG. 6 . As described aboveregarding the transfer route of the wafer W, the transfer mechanism 4Btransfers the wafer W to/from the TRS of the module stacked body T1, theSCPL of the module stacked body T2, the resist film formation module 31,and the heating module 34 which are arranged on the +Y side, the −Yside, the +X side, and the −X side, respectively, relative to thetransfer region 33.

The transfer mechanism 4B includes support columns 41 and 42, an upperbeam 43, a lower beam 44, a slider 51, an arm base main body 52, a firstarm 61, a second arm 62, a base 71, a lower fork 81, and an upper fork82. The support columns 41 and 42, the upper beam 43, and the lower beam44 make up a lift to move up and down the slider 51 and the arm basemain body 52 which make up an arm base. The support columns 41 and 42extend longitudinally, more specifically, vertically at the end of thetransfer region 33 on the −X side. The support column 41 which is afirst support column is disposed on the +Y side relative to the heatingmodule group 35, and the support columns 42 which is a second supportcolumn is disposed on the −Y side relative to the heating module group35.

The upper beam 43 and the lower beam 44 extend transversely, morespecifically, for example, horizontally, and are configured as a flatplate elongated, for example, in the Y direction. One end and the otherend of the upper beam 43 are connected to the upper end of the supportcolumn 41 and the upper end of the support column 42, respectively, andone end and the other end of the lower beam 44 are connected to thelower end of the support column 41 and the lower end of the supportcolumn 42, respectively. The upper beam 43 is disposed above themovement region of the slider 51 that moves up and down as describedlater, and the lower beam 44 is disposed behind the movement region notto interfere with the movement region.

The upper sides of the support columns 41 and 42 are connected to eachother, and the lower sides of the support columns 41 and 42 areconnected to each other, by the upper beam 43 and the lower beam 44,respectively, so that the relatively high rigidity of the supportcolumns 41 and 42 are ensured. As a result, the deformation or shakingof the support columns 41 and 42 is suppressed, and the wafer W may betransferred to an exact position in a module. Further, as a result ofthe connection of the support columns 41 and 42, the positionaldeviation between the support columns 41 and 42 is prevented, so thatwhen each part of the transfer mechanism 4B supported by the supportcolumns 41 and 42 is assembled, the positional accuracy of the part maybe improved.

A frame is provided in the housing 20 of the first upper processingblock D22 to attach, for example, the modules, and fixed to the housing20. In the frame, the portions that extend longitudinally areillustrated as longitudinally extending portions 45 in FIGS. 1 and 3 ,and disposed behind the support columns 41 and 42, respectively. Thesupport columns 41 and 42 are connected to the longitudinally extendingportions 45, respectively, by fixing tools 46 such as, for example,bolts with intervals along the length direction. In this way, thesupport columns 41 and 42 are fixed to the housing 20 along the lengthdirection thereof, and as a result, the relatively high rigidity isensured as described above. In the housing 20, regions 47 are providedbehind the support columns 41 and 42 to be partitioned from the transferregion 33 and the heating module group 35. Accordingly, the partitionedregions 47 are partitioned from the processing modules, and the rearsides of the longitudinally extending portions 45 face the partitionedregions 47. In the partitioned regions 47, auxiliary facilities relatedto the modules are provided, such as an exhaust duct connected to themodules or electric equipment for operating the modules.

Hereinafter, the schematic configuration of the slider 51, the arm basemain body 52, the first arm 61, the second arm 62, and the base 71 willbe described. The slider 51 is provided between the support columns 41and 42 to extend transversely, specifically, for example, horizontally.The slider 51 is configured as a beam-shaped body of which one end andthe other end are connected to and supported by the support columns 41and 42, respectively. Although the mechanism of the support columns 41and 42 will be described later, the support columns 41 and 42 may moveup and down the slider 51 in the longitudinal direction which is theextending direction of the support columns 41 and 42, more specifically,in the vertical direction.

The arm base main body 52 is connected to the slider 51, and protrudesfrom the upper end of the center of the slider 51 in the extendingdirection thereof (the Y direction) toward the +X side, that is, towardthe direction crossing the Y direction. The proximal end of the firstarm 61 is connected to the lower side of the arm base main body 52 to berotatable around the longitudinal axis, more specifically, for example,the vertical axis, and the tip end of the first arm 61 extendstransversely, more specifically, for example, horizontally. Accordingly,the tip end of the first arm 61 is pivotable around the vertical axiswith respect to the arm base main body 52.

The proximal end of the second arm 62 is connected to the upper side ofthe tip end of the first arm 61 to be rotatable around the longitudinalaxis, more specifically, for example, the vertical axis, and the tip endof the second arm 62 extends transversely, more specifically, forexample, horizontally. Accordingly, the tip end of the second arm 62 ispivotable around the vertical axis with respect to the first arm 61. Thebase 71 is connected to the upper side of the tip end of the second arm62 to be rotatable around the longitudinal axis, more specifically, forexample, the vertical axis with respect to the tip end of the second arm62. The base 71 is positioned above the second arm 62, and alsopositioned above the arm base main body 52. The forks 81 and 82 (thelower fork 81 and the upper fork 82) each capable of absorbing andholding the wafer W are arranged side by side in the vertical directionon the base 71. Accordingly, the forks 81 and 82 which are holders ofthe wafer W are provided to be rotatable on the upper side of the tipend of the second arm 62. The base 71 may advance and retreat the lowerfork 81 which is a first holder and the upper fork 82 which is a secondholder, independently from each other, with respect to the base 71.

The transfer mechanism 4B is configured as the SCARA type transfer armby including the first arm 61 and the second arm 62 that areindependently rotatable as described above, and the rotating movementcauses the base 71 to move to the vicinity of the module to which thewafer W is to be delivered. Then, by the advancing/retreating movementof the forks 81 and 82, the wafer W is delivered to the module. The armbase main body 52 is provided with a motor 53 which is a first driver,and the driving force of the motor 53 is transmitted to the first arm 61and the second arm 62 via power transmission mechanisms includingpulleys and belts to be described later, so that the first arm 61 andthe second arm 62 rotate together. That is, the first arm 61 and thesecond arm 62 share the motor 53, and the second arm 62 rotates insynchronization with the rotation of the first arm 61.

Various types of cables for driving each part of the transfer mechanism4B and absorption pipes 85A and 85B (hereinafter, referred to as cables)are routed by using the space formed inside each of the second arm 62,the first arm 61, the arm base main body 52, the slider 51, the supportcolumns 41 and 42. That is, an installation space of the cables isprovided from the second arm 62 to the inside of the support columns 41and 42 through the first arm 61, the arm base main body 52, and theslider 51 in this order. The installation space is formed in the housingthat makes up each of the second arm 62, the first arm 61, and the armbase main body 52 as described later. A gap is formed in the surface ofthe housing to be connected to the installation space. For example, asdescribed later, the gap of the housing is formed between a memberprovided to penetrate the wall of the housing and the wall of thehousing.

In the installation space of the cables, the region from the second arm62 to the slider 51 is exhausted by an exhaust mechanism provided in theslider 51, and the gap of the surface of the housing has a negativepressure with respect to the transfer region 33. Thus, the atmosphere inthe transfer region 33 flows to the exhaust mechanism through the gap ofthe housing and the installation space of the cables. Accordingly, evenwhen particles are generated from the power transmission mechanismprovided in the housing to include pulleys and a belt, the particles areprevented from scattering into the transfer region 33 through the gap ofthe housing, by the exhausting of the atmosphere.

The slider 51 also includes a housing (indicated as 51A in FIG. 6 ). Aspace 54 in the housing 51A serves as the installation space of thecables described above, and the space 54 extends along the lengthdirection of the slider 51. In the front surface of the slider 51,openings 55A are formed on the +Y side and −Y side, respectively,relative to the position where the arm base main body 52 is provided,and fans 55 are provided as the exhaust mechanism described above tooverlap with the openings 55A, respectively. Each fan 55 includes afilter, and the atmosphere exhausted as described above passes throughthe filter and is returned to the transfer region 33 through theopenings 55A in a clean state (particle-free state).

Hereinafter, the arm base main body 52 will be described with referenceto FIG. 7 which is a perspective view taken by cutting out the upper endof the arm base main body 52. The arm base main body 52 includes ahousing 52A, and the motor 53 described above is provided at theposition shifted in the −Y direction from the position to which thefirst arm 61 is connected, on the lower side of the housing 52A. In thehousing 52A which is a housing for the arm base main body, pulleys 56and 57 are provided apart from each other in the Y direction to berotatable around the vertical axis, and an endless belt 58 wraps aroundthe pulleys 56 and 57. The pulley 56 is connected to the motor 53. Athrough hole 57A is formed at the center of the pulley 57 along theaxial direction of the pulley 57, and the upper side of the through hole57A is opened in the housing 52A. Further, communication holes 59 areopened in the rear wall of the housing 52A, and connected to the space54 in the slider 51 described above.

Next, the first arm 61 will be described. The first arm 61 includes ahousing 61A (see FIG. 6 ). In the housing 61A which is a housing for thefirst arm, pulleys 63 and 64 are provided close to the proximal end andthe tip end of the first arm 61, respectively, to be rotatable aroundthe vertical axis, and an endless belt 65 wraps around the pulleys 63and 64. Through holes 63A and 64A are formed at the centers of thepulleys 63 and 64, respectively, along the axial directions of thepulleys 63 and 64.

The lower side of the through hole 63A of the pulley 63 is opened in thehousing 61A. The pulley 63 is connected to the upper wall of the housing61A. The hole edge of the through hole 63A of the pulley 63 protrudesupward, and penetrates the upper portion of the housing 61A and thelower portion of the housing 52A of the arm base main body 52 to beconnected to the pulley 57. The pulley 63, a connector 63B, and thepulley 57 are roughly one cylindrical body and rotate all together, andtheir respective rotating axes are aligned in a plan view. Further, forexample, the connector 63B is configured to include a speed reducer suchthat the gear ratio of the pulleys 63 and 57 (the ratio of the number ofrotating times) becomes a predetermined value, and the illustrationthereof is omitted. Since the pulley 63 and the housing 61A areconnected to each other as described above, the first arm 61 rotatesalong with the rotation of the pulley 63. The hole edge of the throughhole 64A of the pulley 64 also protrudes upward to penetrate the upperwall of the housing 61A, and is configured as a cylindrical connector64B.

Next, the second arm 62 will be described. The second arm 62 includes ahousing 62A. The cylindrical connector 64B described above is connectedto the lower surface of the housing 62A, and the inside of the connector64B communicates with the inside of the housing 62A. As a result of theconnection through the connector 64B, the second arm 62 rotates alongwith the rotation of the pulley 64. Valves 66A and 66B which are, forexample, solenoid valves, and pressure sensors 67A and 67B are providedin the housing 62A which is a housing for the second arm, and detailsthereof will be described later. A motor 68 is provided on the lowerside of the proximal end of the housing 62A, and pivots on the lateralside of the tip end of the first arm 61 by the rotation of the secondarm 62. The driving force of the motor 68 is transmitted to the base 71via power transmission mechanisms for the base 71 configured withpulleys and a belt, so that the base 71 rotates. As for the powertransmission mechanisms for rotating the base 71, FIG. 7 illustratesonly a pulley 69 provided such that the upper end thereof is connectedto the lower side of the base 71.

The pulleys 56, 57, 63, and 64, and the belts 58 and 65 described aboveare power transmission mechanisms that transmit the driving force of themotor 53 to the first arm 61 and the second arm 62, and the pulleys 56,57, 63, and 64 rotate all together via the belts 58 and 65 by thedriving force of the motor 53. As a result, the first arm 61 and thesecond arm 62 rotate together with a predetermined rotation ratio asdescribed above. The inside of the housing 62A, the through hole 64A ofthe pulley 64, the inside of the housing 61A, the through hole 63A ofthe pulley 63, the through hole 57A of the pulley 57, the inside of thehousing 52A, the communication hole 59, and the space 54 is a space (acommunication path) exhausted by the fans 55 of the slider 51 which area second exhaust mechanism, and the atmosphere flows toward the fans 55in this order to be exhausted. As described above, since the space wherethe power transmission mechanisms including pulleys and belts areprovided is collectively exhausted by the fans 55, the fans 55 do notneed to be provided in each housing for the exhausting purpose, so thatthe manufacturing costs for the transfer mechanism 4B is reduced.

Next, the base 71 will be described with reference to FIG. 8 which is ahorizontal sectional plan view. The base 71 includes a flat angularhousing 70, and the housing 70 is configured in a substantiallyrectangular shape in a plan view. The forks 81 and 82 advance andretreat in the length direction of the rectangle, to move between aretreating position where the holding region of the wafer W in each forkis positioned on the base 71, and an advancing position where theholding region projects forward from the base 71. The forks 81 and 82overlap with each other at the retreating position. One of the forks 81and 82 is used for receiving the wafer W from a module, and the other isused for sending the wafer W to a module.

Hereinafter, for the convenience of description of the configuration,the long length direction of the housing 70 may be referred to as thefront-rear direction, and the short length direction thereof may bereferred to as the left-right direction. The right and left sides of thebase 71 are the right and left sides when viewed in the advancingdirection of the forks 81 and 82. In the housing 70, a driving mechanism7A for the lower fork 81 and a driving mechanism 7B for the upper fork82 are provided. The driving mechanism 7A includes a motor 72A, pulleys73A and 74A, a belt 75A, a guide 76A, and a connector 77A. The drivingmechanism 7B includes a motor 72B, pulleys 73B and 74B, a belt 75B, aguide 76B, and a connector 77B. The pulleys 73A, 74A, 73B, and 74B eachrotates around a horizontal rotating axis that extends to the left-rightdirection. The belts 75A and 75B are endless belts. The guides 76A and76B are formed to extend horizontally in the front-rear direction.

As for the driving mechanism 7A which is a first advancing andretreating mechanism, the motor 72A is disposed at the center of therear side of the housing 70 in the left-right direction inside thehousing 70. The pulley 73A is disposed on the right side of the motor72A, the pulley 74A is disposed in front of the pulley 73A, and the belt75A wraps around the pulleys 73A and 74A. The guide 76A is provided onthe right side of the pulleys 73A and 74A and the belt 75A. The left endof the plate-shaped connector 77A is locked between the guide 76A andthe belt 75A. The right end of the connector 77A protrudes to the rightside (one side of the left and right sides) of the housing 70 through aslit 71A formed in the right surface of the housing 70, and is bentupward outside the housing 70 to be connected to the lower fork 81. Withthis configuration, the lower fork 81 is supported by the base 71 viathe connector 77A and the guide 76A. The belt 75A is driven by the motor72A, and the connector 77A moves along the length direction of the guide76A, such that the lower fork 81 connected to the connector 77A advancesand retreats.

As for the driving mechanism 7B which is a second advancing andretreating mechanism, the motor 72B is disposed at the center of thefront side of the housing 70 in the left-right direction inside thehousing 70. The pulley 73B is disposed on the left side of the motor72B, the pulley 74B is disposed behind the pulley 73B, and the belt 75Bwraps around the pulleys 73B and 74B. A guide 76B is provided on theleft side of the pulleys 73B and 74B and the belt 75B. The right end ofthe plate-shaped connector 77B is locked between the guide 76B and thebelt 75B. The left end of the connector 77B protrudes to the left side(the other side of the left and right sides) of the housing 70 through aslit 71B formed in the left surface of the housing 70, and is bentupward outside the housing 70 to be connected to the upper fork 82. Withthis configuration, the upper fork 82 is supported by the base 71 viathe connector 77B and the guide 76B. The belt 75B is driven by the motor72B, and the connector 77B moves along the length direction of the guide76B, so that the upper fork 82 connected to the connector 77B advancesand retreats. A seal belt is provided to close each of the slits 71A and71B of the base 71, but the illustration thereof is omitted.

As described above, the pulleys 73A and 74A, the belt 75A, the guide76A, and the connector 77A of the driving mechanism 7A are provided onthe right side inside the housing 70. The pulleys 73B and 74B, the belt75B, the guide 76B, and the connector 77B of the driving mechanism 7Bare provided on the left side inside the housing 70. Further, cables(wiring) are connected to the motors 72A and 72B which are each a thirddriver, to supply an electric power. The upstream side of the cables isdrawn out to the housing 62A of the second arm 62 through theinstallation region provided in the pulley 69 connected to the lowerside of the base 71 as described above, and accommodated in thecommunication path described above. That is, the cables are drawn outfrom the inside of the housing 70 to the support column 41 or 42 throughthe inside of the housing 62A, the inside of the housing 61A, the insideof the housing 52A, and the housing 51A in this order.

The lower fork 81 will be described. The lower fork 81 has a plateshape, and its tip end is divided into two parts to extend forward in asubstantially horseshoe shape that surrounds the side circumference ofthe wafer W. Four claws 83 are formed at the tip end of the lower fork81 that surrounds the wafer W as described above to protrude toward thecenter of the region that supports the wafer W, and support the backsurface of the wafer W. The claws 83 are provided with absorption holes84, respectively, that absorb the back surface of the wafer W whilesupporting the wafer W. The upstream ends of the absorption pipe 85A areconnected to the absorption holes 84, respectively, and the downstreamsides of the absorption pipe 85A merge with each other. The connector77A is connected to the lower right side of the proximal end of thelower fork 81.

The upper fork 82 has the same configuration as that of the lower fork81, and the absorption pipe corresponding to the absorption pipe 85A isindicated as 85B. The connector 77B is connected to the lower left sideof the proximal end of the upper fork 82.

The merged downstream side of the absorption pipe 85A and the mergeddownstream side of the absorption pipe 85B are routed in the housing 62Aof the second arm 62. A valve 66A and a pressure sensor 67A are providedin this order toward the downstream side in the middle of the absorptionpipe 85A, and a valve 66B and a pressure sensor 67B are provided in thisorder toward the downstream side in the middle of the absorption pipe85B. The downstream ends of the absorption pipes 85A and 85B areconnected to an exhaust source (not illustrated).

When the valve 66A is opened while the lower fork 81 is supporting thewafer W, the back surface of the wafer W is absorbed from the absorptionholes 84 of the lower fork 81, and held by the lower fork 81. When thevalve 66B is opened while the upper fork 82 is supporting the wafer W,the wafer W is absorbed from the absorption holes 84 of the upper fork82, and held by the upper fork 82. Further, during the operation of thesubstrate processing apparatus 1, the pressure sensors 67A and 67Btransmit detection signals corresponding to the pressures in theabsorption pipes 85A and 85B, respectively, to the controller 10. As aresult, the controller 10 may determine the presence/absence ofabnormality. The pressure sensors 67A and 67B are provided with a screen68C that displays detected pressures in the absorption pipes 85A and85B, respectively (see FIG. 5 ), and the screen is exposed on the sidesurface of the housing 62A. A user of the substrate processing apparatus1 may visually check the screen and perform, for example, a maintenance.

Further, the base 71 is provided with a position detector 86 thatdetects the position of the wafer W held on the lower fork 81 or theupper fork 82 at the retreating position with respect to the fork. Theposition detector 86 includes a support frame 87 formed in a portalshape when the base 71 is viewed in the front-rear direction. Thesupport frame 87 includes a total of four light irradiators 88 that emitlight downward toward the peripheral edge of the wafer W, and a total offour light recipients 89 disposed below the light irradiators 89,respectively. The controller 10 detects the position of the wafer Wbased on the area where each light recipient 89 receives light. For theconvenience of illustration, FIG. 5 illustrates only two lightirradiators 88 and two light recipients 89. Further, for example, FIGS.6 to 8 omit the illustration of the position detector 86.

Next, the support columns 41 and 42 will be described more in detailwith reference to FIG. 9 which is a schematic vertical sectional frontview. The support column 41 is configured with a housing 40, and a motor91 is provided to protrude from the rear side of the upper end of thehousing 40. The motor 91 which is a second driver is provided in thepartitioned region 47 illustrated in FIG. 1 . Pulleys 92 and 93 areprovided at the upper and lower ends of the housing 40, respectively,inside the housing 40, and each rotate around a horizontal axis thatextends in the front-rear direction. An endless belt 94 wraps around thepulleys 92 and 93. A guide 95 is provided on the −Y side relative to thepulleys 92 and 93 inside the housing 40. The guide 95 is used for movingup and down the slider 51, and extends vertically. A verticallyextending slit 96 is formed in the side surface of the housing 40 on the−Y side. A vertically extending connector 51B that serves as the end ofthe slider 51 on the +Y side is provided in the housing 40 by enteringthe housing 40 through the slit 96, and locked and supported between thebelt 94 and the guide 95. The slit 96 is also closed by a seal belt, butthe illustration of the seal belt is omitted. The motor 91 may beprovided below each of the support columns 41 and 42 to rotate thepulley 93.

Fans 97 and 98 are provided near the upper and lower ends of the housing40, respectively, inside the housing 40 to exhaust the inside of thehousing 40. More specifically, by the fans 97 and 98 provided on theupper and lower sides inside the housing 40, respectively, theatmosphere in the transfer region 33 is absorbed into the housing 40through the slit 96, and is exhausted to, for example, the partitionedregion 47. As a result of the exhausting, the slit 96 and the inside ofthe housing 40 have a negative pressure with respect to the transferregion 33, and particles from the inside of the housing 40 aresuppressed from scattering into the transfer region 33 through the slit96. In a case where the fans 97 and 98 are not provided, the atmospherein the upper and lower ends inside the housing 40 may be compressed dueto the movement of the end of the slider 51 inside the housing 40 sothat the pressure may easily increase, and particles may easily scatterfrom the upper and lower ends through the slit 96. In order to morereliably prevent the scattering of particles, the fan 97 is providednear the upper end inside the housing 40, and the fan 98 is providednear the lower end inside the housing 40. Similarly to the fan 55 of theslider 51, each of the fans 97 and 98 may be configured to include afilter to return the exhausted atmosphere to the transfer region 33.

The support column 42 is configured to be mirror-symmetric with thesupport column 41 in the Y direction. The end of the slider 51 on the −Yside is also configured with the connector 51B, and the connector 51Benters the housing 40 of the support column 42 through the slit 96 andis supported by the support column 42 by being locked between the belt94 and the guide 95. The pulleys 92 and 93 of the support column 41 andthe pulleys 92 and 93 of the support column 42 rotate by the motors 91of the support columns 41 and 42, and the belts 94 of the supportcolumns 41 and 42 are driven, so that the slider 51 moves up and downalong the length direction of the guide 95. Accordingly, the pulleys 92and 93, the belt 94, and the guide 95 make up a lifting mechanismprovided in the internal space formed along the length direction of thesupport column 41 (the space inside the housing 40).

FIG. 10 illustrates the movement trajectory of the first arm 61 and thesecond arm 62 from the center of the transfer region 33 in the Ydirection to the +Y side when the transfer mechanism 4B delivers thewafer W to each module, by using a solid line, an alternate long andshort dash line, and an alternate lone and two short dashes line.Further, FIG. 10 illustrates the rotation center of the first arm 61(i.e., the rotation center of the pulleys 57 and 63) as P1, the rotationcenter of the second arm 62 (i.e., the rotation center of the pulley 64)as P2, and the rotation center of the base 71 as P3.

As represented by the alternate long and two short dashes line in FIG.10 , when the tip end of the first arm 61 faces forward, the tip end ofthe second arm 62 faces rearward, and the rotation center P3 ispositioned at the center of the transfer region 33 in the Y direction.In this state, as the tip end of the first arm 61 faces the end of thetransfer region 33 on the +Y side, the tip end of the second arm 62faces the +Y side (represented by the solid line and the alternate longand short dash line). In this way, when the first arm 61 and the secondarm 62 move, the trajectory of the rotation center P3 substantiallycoincides with a virtual straight line L1 at the center of the transferregion 33 in the front-rear direction due to the gear ratio of therespective pulleys. While FIG. 10 omits the illustration of the movementtrajectory of the first arm 61 and the second arm 62 on the −Y side ofthe transfer region 33 for the purpose of eliminating any complicationin illustration, the movement trajectory is symmetric with that on the+Y side with respect to the center of the transfer region 33 in the Ydirection. Accordingly, the rotation center P3 substantially coincideswith the straight line L1 on the −Y side of the transfer region 33 aswell as on the +Y side. The case where the rotation center P3substantially coincides with the straight line L1 means that thedistance from the straight line L1 is equal to or less than 3 mm.

Even when the position of the rotation center P3 in the front-reardirection slightly deviates at each position of the transfer region 33in the Y direction, so that the distance from the base 71 deviatesbetween one processing module and another processing module that facethe transfer region 33, the advancing amount of the lower fork 81 andthe upper fork 82 of the base 71 may be adjusted. That is, by adjustingthe advancing amount, the influence of the positional deviation of therotation center P3 is eliminated.

Descriptions will be made on the process in which the transfer mechanism4B described above transfers the wafer W from the resist film formationmodule 31 to an arbitrary heating module 34. For example, it is assumedthat the upper fork 82 holds the wafer W processed by the resist filmformation module 31, and both the forks 81 and 82 are at the retreatingposition. When the slider 51 moves up and down by the motors 91 of thecolumns 41 and 42 so that the base 71 is positioned at the heightcorresponding to the heating module 34 which is the transfer destinationof the wafer W, the first arm 61 and the second arm 62 rotate by themotor 53 of the arm base main body 52, and the rotation center P3 of thebase 71 moves along the transfer region 33 as described above in FIG. 10, such that the base 71 is positioned in front of the heating module 34of the transfer destination.

When the base 71 rotates by the motor 68 of the second arm 62 such thatthe tip ends of the forks 81 and 82 face the heating module 34, thelower fork 81 moves to the advancing position. Subsequently, the slider51 moves up so that the wafer W processed in the heating module 34 isdelivered to the lower fork 81. Then, when the lower fork 81 returns tothe retreating position, the upper fork 82 moves to the advancingposition, and the slider 51 moves down so that the wafer W held by theupper fork 82 is placed on the heating module 34. As described above,the valves 66A and 66B are opened/closed such that the absorption fromthe absorption holes 84 of the lower fork 81 is performed during theholding of the wafer W by the lower fork 81, and the absorption from theabsorption holes 84 of the upper fork 82 is performed during the holdingof the wafer W by the upper fork 82. When the lower fork 81 or the upperfork 82 is at the retreating position while holding the wafer W, theposition detector 86 described above detects the position of the waferW.

While the transfer of the wafer W to the heating module 34 has beendescribed as a representative, the wafer W is transferred to anothermodule in the same manner as described above. Depending on a module of atransfer destination of the wafer W, the wafer W may be delivered by alifting pin provided in the module, instead of moving up and down theslider 51. Further, for example, during the operation of the substrateprocessing apparatus 1, the exhausting by the fans 55 of the slider 51and the fans 97 and 98 of the support columns 41 and 42 is performed atall times, so that the scattering of particles described above isprevented.

According to the transfer mechanism 4B, the support columns 41 and 42are fixed to the transfer region 33, and the movement of the base 71 andthe forks 81 and 82 in the Y direction is implemented by the first arm61 and the second arm 62 supported to the support columns 41 and 42 viathe slider 51 and the arm base main body 52. Thus, for example, ascompared with a configuration in which the support columns 41 and 42 aremoved in the Y direction to implement the movement of the base 71 andthe forks 81 and 82, the volume of the structure that moves in thetransfer region 33 may be made relatively small, so that it may beavoided that the airflow in the transfer region 33 is disturbed by themovement of the structure, and thus, particles scatter and adhere to thewafer W. Thus, according to the transfer mechanism 4B, the wafer W maybe transferred in a transversely wide range by the rotation of the firstarm 61 and the second arm 62, and the reduction in yield ofsemiconductor devices manufactured from the wafer W may be prevented.

According to the transfer mechanism 4B, the proximal end of the firstarm 61 is connected to the lower side of the arm base main body 52, theproximal end of the second arm 62 is connected to the upper side of thetip end of the first arm 61, and the forks 81 and 82 are provided on theupper side of the second arm 62 via the base 71. Thus, the thickness(vertical length) of the structure including the arm base main body 52,the first arm 61, and the second arm 62 may be reduced, and the forks 81and 82 are disposed above the first arm 61 and the second arm 62. Sincethe forks 81 and 82 are disposed above the arms, particles that may beemitted and fall from, for example, the pulleys and the belts includedin the first arm 61 and the second arm 62 are suppressed from adheringto the wafer W, so that the reduction in yield of semiconductor productsmay be more reliably prevented. The present example is also preferablebecause the forks 81 and 82 are also disposed above the arm base mainbody 52, and thus, the adhesion of particles from the arm base main body52 to the wafer W is also suppressed. The relatively small thickness ofthe structure including the arm base main body 52, the first arm 61, andthe second arm 62 indicates that the height of the space to which thewafer W cannot be transferred below the forks 81 and 82 is relativelysmall. That is, since the wafer W may be transferred in a longitudinallywide range, the degree of freedom increases in layout of the height ofthe modules to which the wafer W is delivered by the transfer mechanism4B. Accordingly, the number of stacked modules such as, for example, theresist film formation modules 31 and the heating modules 34 which arearranged by being stacked may be further increased.

As illustrated in FIG. 5 , the height of the upper end of the structureincluding the housing 52A of the arm base main body 52, the housing 61Aof the first arm 61, and the housing 62A of the second arm 62 which areconnected to each other (=the height of the upper surfaces of thehousings 52A and 62A) is the same as the height of the upper end of theslider 51. Further, the height of the lower end of the structure (=theheight of the lower surface of the housing 61A) is the same as theheight of the lower end of the slider 51. Since the lower end of thestructure and the lower end of the slider 51 have the heightrelationship described above, it is possible to prevent the structurefrom coming into contact with the bottom of the transfer region 33 anddisturbing the downward movement of the slider 51. Further, since theupper end of the structure and the upper end of the slider 51 have theheight relationship described above, the heights of the lower fork 81and the upper fork 82 are prevented from becoming higher than the upperend of the slider 51, so that the height of the space to which the waferW cannot be transferred below the forks 81 and 82 is reduced.

Since the height relationship between the upper end of the slider 51 andthe upper end of the structure and the height relationship between thelower end of the slider 51 and the lower end of the structure are set asdescribed above, the height range to which each of the forks 81 and 82may access increases. Thus, the degree of freedom in layout of height ofthe modules further increases, so that the number of stacked modules maybe increased. In order to obtain the effects described here, the heightof the upper end of the structure may be lower than the height of theupper end of the slider 51, and the height of the lower end of thestructure may be higher than the height of the lower end of the slider51. That is, the height of the upper end of the structure has only to beequal to or lower than the height of the upper end of the slider 51, andthe height of the lower end of the structure has only to be equal to orhigher than the height of the lower end of the slider 51.

While the transfer mechanism 4B is a SCARA type transfer mechanism asdescribed above, the tip end thereof is configured such that the forks81 and 82 advance and retreat with respect to the base 71. With thisconfiguration, as described above regarding the transfer of the wafer Wto the heating module 34, the wafer W may be carried in/out with respectto a module by the advancing/retreating movement of the forks 81 and 82without moving the base 71 transversely. Thus, the wafer W may bequickly carried in/out with respect to the module, so that a relativelyhigh throughput may be obtained in the substrate processing apparatus 1.Further, since the position detector 86 is provided on the base 71,there is an advantage in that the position of the wafer W may bedetected for each of the forks 81 and 82.

In the housing 70 of the base 71, the driving mechanism 7A is disposedon the right side, and the driving mechanism 7B is disposed on the leftside. Further, the belt 75A and the guide 76A of the driving mechanism7A are connected to the lower fork 81 by the connector 77A protruding tothe left side of the housing 70, and the belt 75B and the guide 76B ofthe driving mechanism 7B are connected to the upper fork 82 by theconnector 77B protruding to the right side of the housing 70. In thisway, the driving mechanisms 7A and 7B are arranged on the left and rightsides of the base 71, and each of the lower fork 81 and the upper fork82 is supported only from one of the left and right sides of the base71, so that the thickness of the base 71 may be made relatively small.More specifically, it may be assumed that each fork is connected to adriving mechanism in the housing 70 of the base 71 by connectorsprovided on the left and right sides of the base 71. In that case, sincethe connectors of the lower fork 81 and the connectors of the upper fork82 need to have different heights in order not to interfere with themutual operations, the thickness of the base 71 increases. Meanwhile,according to the configuration of the present disclosure, the connectors77A and 77B do not need to have different heights, so that the thicknessof the base 71 may be reduced as described above. Since the thickness ofthe base 71 is small, the lifting region of the forks 81 and 82 may bewidened. Accordingly, the degree of freedom in layout of the height ofthe modules to which the wafer W is delivered by the transfer mechanism4B may be further increased.

The lower fork 81 is supported only from the right side of the left andright sides of the base 71 by the connector 77A, and the upper fork 82is supported only from the left side of the left and right sides of thebase 71 by the connector 77B. Since the center of gravity of theconnector 77A is positioned at the right end, the connector 77A issupported at the position close to the center of gravity, so that aslight tilting of the lower fork 81 connected to the connector 77A maybe suppressed, and thus, the wafer W may be more reliably and stablytransferred. Similarly, since the center of gravity of the connector 77Bis positioned at the left end, the connector 77B is supported at theposition close to the center of gravity, so that a slight tilting of theupper fork 82 connected to the connector 77B may be suppressed, andthus, the wafer W may be more reliably and stably transferred. Thus, asdescribed above, it is preferable that the guide 76A is disposed on theright side relative to the belt 75A in the driving mechanism 7A, and theguide 76B is disposed on the left side relative to the belt 75B in thedrive mechanism 7B.

Since the pressure sensors 67A and 67B disposed in the middle of theabsorption pipes 85A and 85B that make up an exhaust path are providedin the second arm 62, the positions thereof are relatively close to theabsorption holes 84 of the forks 81 and 82. This configuration ispreferable because the followability of a detection value to thevariation of absorption amount from the absorption holes 84 isrelatively high, so that the presence/absence of abnormality may bedetected with a high accuracy. Further, the abnormality of adsorption ofthe wafer W may be detected by monitoring the state of the exhaust path,and the state of the exhaust path may be, for example, the flow ratewithout being limited to the pressure. Thus, instead of the pressuresensors 67A and 67B, for example, flow rate sensors may be provided inthe absorption pipes 85A and 85B to detect exhaust amounts.

The heating module 34 is provided with a heating plate for placing andheating the wafer W thereon, and in the resist film formation module 31,a solvent is supplied in order to improve the wettability of the surfaceof the wafer W before a resist is supplied. Since the motors 91 providedin the support columns 41 and 42 are arranged in the partitioned regions47 as described above, the motors 91 are suppressed from being affectedby the heat of the heating plate and are also prevented from beingexposed to the solvent atmosphere. Thus, the reduction of the life ofthe motors 91 is prevented.

In the example of configuration described above, when the first arm 61and the second arm 62 are moved in synchronization with each other bythe motor 53, the power transmission mechanisms including belts andpulleys are used. However, the first arm 61 and the second arm 62 may bemoved in synchronization with each other by using power transmissionmechanism including a plurality of gears. In the example ofconfiguration described above, the motors 91 are provided in the supportcolumns 41 and 42, respectively. However, a motor may be provided inonly one of the support columns 41 and 42. The processing modules thatare stacked in the substrate processing apparatus 1 and share thetransfer mechanism 4B for transferring the wafer W are not limited tothe application film formation modules such as the resist film formationmodules 31, or the heating modules 34 described above. The processingmodules may be modules for supplying various liquids such as, forexample, a developer, a cleaning liquid, and an adhesive, to the waferW, or modules for exposing the wafer W. Additionally, the processingmodules may include inspection modules for capturing images in order todetect an abnormality in the wafer W.

Second Embodiment

A substrate processing apparatus 1A according to a second embodimentwill be described with reference to the plan view of FIG. 11 , focusingon the differences from the substrate processing apparatus 1 of thefirst embodiment. In the substrate processing apparatus 1A, transfermechanisms 40A, 40B, 40C, and 40D are provided, in place of the transfermechanisms 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D, respectively, and FIG. 11 illustrates thetransfer mechanisms 40B and 40D. Further, the substrate processingapparatus 1A is different from the substrate processing apparatus 1 interms of the arrangement of the modules on the −X side of the transferregion 33 in each of the processing blocks D21, D22, D31, and D32. Thetransfer mechanisms 40A to 40D have the same configuration, and thearrangement of the modules on the −X side is the same among theprocessing blocks D21, D22, D31, and D32.

Hereinafter, the first upper processing block D22 and the transfermechanism 40B provided in the first upper processing block D22 will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 12 which is a vertical sectional sideview toward the +Y direction. As in the substrate processing apparatus1, the seven heating modules 34 are stacked vertically on the −X side ofthe transfer region 33, and two stacked bodies each including the sevenheating modules 34 are arranged side by side in the Y direction.Assuming that the stacked body on the +Y side is “35A,” and the stackedbody on the −Y side is “35B,” the arrangement of the processing modulesis different from that in the substrate processing apparatus 1 in thatthe stacked body 35A which is one of the stacked bodies is separatedfrom the stacked body 35B which is the other stacked body, in the Ydirection as illustrated in FIG. 11 .

As in the substrate processing apparatus 1, the partitioned regions 47provided with the auxiliary facilities of the modules described aboveare provided on the +Y side of the stacked body 35A and the −Y side ofthe stacked body 35B, respectively. Accordingly, the auxiliaryfacilities are provided in the manner that the stacked bodies 35A and35B are sandwiched between the auxiliary facilities in the Y directionin which the stacked bodies 35A and 35B are arranged side by side. Theauxiliary facility of each processing module of the stacked body 35A isprovided in the partitioned region 47 on the +Y side relative to thestacked body 35A, and the auxiliary facility of each processing moduleof the stacked body 35B is provided in the partitioned region 47 on the−Y side relative to the stacked body 35B.

Next, the transfer mechanism 40B will be described, focusing on thedifferences from the transfer mechanism 4B, with reference to FIG. 13which is a horizontal sectional plan view. As described above, thetransfer mechanism 4B is configured such that the arm base main body 52to which the arms are connected is moved up and down by using the twosupport columns (the support columns 41 and 42). In the transfermechanism 40B, the arm base main body 52 is moved up and down by onesupport column (a support column 101 to be described later). By usingone support column, it is possible to prevent an occurrence ofmalfunction caused from an inconsistency resulting from a distortion ofeach member included in one support column and each member included inthe other support column. That is, according to the transfer mechanism40B, the wafer W may be transferred to a module of a transferdestination with a relatively higher accuracy.

The transfer mechanism 40B does not include the support columns 41 and42, the upper beam 43, the lower beam 44, and the slider 51, andincludes the support column 101 instead. The support column 101 extendsvertically at a position close to the +X side between the stacked bodies35A and 35B. Accordingly, the support column 101 is provided at aposition sandwiched between the stacked bodies 35A and 35B in the Ydirection in which the stacked bodies 35A and 35B are arranged side byside. The arm base main body 52 is connected and supported to the sideof the support column 101 on the +X side, and moves up and down alongthe extending direction of the support column 101 in the transfer region33. By providing the support column 101 between the stacked bodies 35Aand 35B and positioning the support columns 101 outside the transferregion 33 as described above, the increase in size of the transferregion 33 in the X direction, and furthermore, the increase in size ofthe substrate processing apparatus 1A is suppressed.

In the transfer mechanism 40B, the fans 55 are provided inside thehousing 52A of the arm base main body 52, rather than inside the slider51, and the inside of the housing 52A, the inside of the housing 61A ofthe first arm 61, and the inside of the housing 62A of the second arm 62which communicate with each other as described above are collectivelyabsorbed by the fans 55. Further, the housing 52A is provided with afilter 50, and the atmosphere absorbed by the fans 55 is discharged tothe outside of the housing 52A, that is, to the transfer region 33through the filter 50.

Next, the configuration of the support column 101 in the transfermechanism 40B will be described with reference to FIG. 14 which is aschematic perspective view of the components inside the support column101. The support column 101 includes a housing 102, and is provided witha partition plate 103 that partitions the inside of the housing 102 intotwo spaces in the X direction. Of the spaces partitioned by thepartition plate 103, the space on the +X side is illustrated as a frontspace 104, and the space on the −X side is illustrated as a rear space105. Two guide rails 106 are provided on the side of the partition plate103 that faces the front space 104 at an interval in the Y direction,and each extend vertically, that is, longitudinally. Thus, assuming thatthe side of the support column 101 on the +X side on which the arm basemain body 52 is provided is the front side, the guide rails 106 arearranged side by side in the left-right direction.

Pulleys 107 and 108 are provided between the two guide rails 106arranged in the Y direction. The pulleys 107 and 108 are disposed at theupper and lower ends of the front space 104, respectively, and may eachrotate around an axis extending in the X direction. An endless belt 110wraps around the pulleys 107 and 108. A motor 109 which is a fourthdriver is provided to protrude from the upper end of the housing 102 inthe −X direction. Thus, the motor 109 is also sandwiched between thestacked bodies 35A and 35B similarly to the support column 101, andconnected to the pulley 107.

A slider 111 is provided in the front space 104. The slider 111 includestwo sliding portions 112 connected to the guide rails 106, respectively,and a main portion 113 forming a concave portion opened toward the −Xside in a plan view. The sliding portions 112 are each formed to expandfrom the edge of the concave portion toward the outside of the concaveportion in a plan view. The belt 108 is fitted in the concave portionformed by the main portion 113 in the plan view as described above, andthe belt 108 and the main portion 113 are connected to each other. Withthis configuration, the belt 108 rotates by the motor 109, and theslider 111 moves up and down along the guide rails 106. Since the slider111 connected to the two guide rails 106 is moved up and down by onemotor 109, the motor 109 is a driver shared by the two guide rails 106.

Two slits 131 are formed in the side surface of the housing 102 on the+X side (the side surface facing the transfer region 33) to be openedtoward the front space 104, and each extend vertically. The two slits131 are arranged apart from each other in the Y direction, and face theguide rails 106, respectively. Rollers 132 and 133 are provided at theupper and lower ends of the front space 104, respectively, and tworollers 132 and 133 and the remaining two rollers 132 and 133 areprovided apart from each other in the Y direction to be arranged side byside in the vertical direction. The rollers 132 and 133 may each rotatearound an axis extending in the Y direction. An endless seal belt 134wraps around each set of the rollers 132 and 133 arranged side by sidein the vertical direction, while closing each slit 131. A portion ofeach seal belt 134 is opened, and the slider 111 and the arm base mainbody 52 are connected to each other via a connecting member 135 providedin the opening. Accordingly, in synchronization with the upward/downwardmovement of the slider 111, the arm base main body 52 moves up and downalong the extending direction of the guide rails 106. In the presentembodiment, the support column 101 and the motor 109 correspond to alift, and the arm base main body 52 corresponds to a base that moves upand down by the lift.

The first arm 61, the second arm 62, and the base 71 described above aresupported by the arm base main body 52 connected to the slider 111. Forthe purpose of suppressing the load of the guide rails 106 received bysupporting the plurality of members so as to increase the life of theguide rails 106, the configuration in which the plurality of guide rails106 are arranged side by side in the Y direction as described above ispreferable. From a different point of view, when the plurality of guiderails 106 are provided as described above, the slider 111 may be movedup and down even in the configuration where one support column isprovided, so that the installation space for the support column isreduced. Thus, providing the plurality of guide rails 106 contributes tothe reduction of the occupied floor area of the substrate processingapparatus 1A. For the purpose of obtaining the effects, two or moreguide rails 106 may be provided.

As illustrated in FIGS. 12 and 13 , fans 141 and 142 are provided at theupper and lower ends of the rear space 105, respectively, and positionedon the −Y and the +Y side, respectively, relative to the position wherethe belt 110 is provided. In the partition plate 103, holes 143 and 144are formed at the positions facing the fans 141 and 142, respectively.By the fans 141 and 142, the atmosphere in the transfer region 33 flowsinto the front space 104 through the gaps between the seal belts 134 andthe opening edges of the slits 131, flows through the holes 143 and 144,and merges in the rear space 105. Further, the housing 102 is providedwith an exhaust path (not illustrated) connected to the rear space 105,such that the atmosphere flowing into the rear space 105 flows into theexhaust path and is removed.

The air flow is formed to flow from the transfer region 33 toward therear space 105 as described above, so that particles generated in eachmember provided in the front space 104 are prevented from beingdischarged to the transfer region 33 through the gaps between the sealbelts 134 and the opening edges of the slits 131. In addition to thefans 141 and 142, various cables for driving each part of the transfermechanism 4B and members for bundling, protecting, and guiding thecables are provided in the rear space 105, but the illustration thereofis omitted. The first upper processing block D22 and the transfermechanism 40B described above are used, and in the substrate processingapparatus 1A, the wafer W is transferred through the same transfer routeas that in the substrate processing apparatus 1 to be subjected to aprocessing.

Due to the transfer route described above, in the substrate processingapparatus 1A, the wafer W is delivered between the processing blocksadjacent to each other in the Y direction, and thus, the wafer Wtransferred to the first upper processing block D22 moves between oneend of the transfer region 33 and the other end thereof in the Ydirection. The substrate processing apparatus may not be configured suchthat the processing blocks are adjacent to each other in the Ydirection. For example, the apparatus may have a transfer route in whichthe wafer W transferred from the carrier block D1 to the first upperprocessing block D22 is returned to the carrier block D1 after beingprocessed in the processing modules of the stacked bodies 35A and 35B.

In such an apparatus configuration, the wafer W may not be moved to theend of the transfer region 33 on the −Y side when the wafer W isdelivered to the processing modules of the stacked bodies 35A and 35B,because the apparatus has the layout in which the stacked bodies 35A and35B are sandwiched between the two partition regions 47 each providedwith the auxiliary facilities as described above. Further, it is assumedthat the apparatus has the transfer route in which the wafer W istransferred between the processing modules of the stacked body 35A andthe processing modules of the stacked body 35B to be subjected to aprocessing. In the layout described above, only the support column 101is interposed between the stacked bodies 35A and 35B, and the stackedbodies 35A and 35B are close to each other. Accordingly, the time forthe transfer between the processing modules of the stacked body 35A andthe processing modules of the stacked body 35B may be reduced. Byadopting the layout described above for the partitioned regions 47 andthe stacked bodies 35A and 35B, the throughput of the substrateprocessing apparatus may be improved.

Next, FIG. 15 will be described. FIG. 15 is a horizontal sectional planview illustrating a modification of the support column 101 of thetransfer mechanism 4B. In the front space 104 of the support column 101,partition members 150 are provided to approach the belt 110 from the Xdirection, and the front space 104 is partitioned into three partitionedregions 151, 152, and 153 by the partition members 150. The regions 151and 152 are regions outside the annular belt 110, and include the guiderails 106, respectively. The holes 143 and 144 are opened in thepartitioned regions 151 and 152, respectively, so that exhausting isperformed from each of the fans 141 and 142. The partitioned region 153is surrounded by the belt 110, and a hole 145 is formed in the partitionplate 103 to be opened to the partitioned region 153. A fan 146 isprovided in the rear space 105 to face the hole 145, so that thepartitioned region 153 is exhausted through the hole 145.

In the modification described above, the fans 141, 142, and 146 whichare exhaust mechanisms are provided to correspond to the partitionedregions 151, 152, and 153, respectively. Since the partitioned region153 may also be exhausted by the fans 141 and 142 through the gapsbetween the belt 110 and the partition members 150, the fan 146 may notbe provided. In that case as well, the fans 141 and 142 which areexhaust mechanisms are provided to correspond to the partitioned regions151 and 152, respectively. In this way, by adopting the configuration inwhich the inside of the housing 102 is partitioned in a plurality ofregions, and exhaust mechanisms corresponding to the partitionedregions, respectively, are provided to perform the exhausting, theexhausting efficiency in each portioned region is improved, so that thedischarge of particles from the inside of the housing 102 to thetransfer region 33 is more reliably suppressed.

According to the present disclosure, when a substrate is delivered tostacked processing modules by a substrate transfer mechanism, thesubstrate may be transferred in a wide range while suppressing theadhesion of particles to the substrate.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that various embodiments ofthe present disclosure have been described herein for purposes ofillustration, and that various modifications may be made withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.Accordingly, the various embodiments disclosed herein are not intendedto be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by thefollowing claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A substrate transfer device comprising: an armbase main body provided with a first driver; a lift configured to moveup and down the arm base main body; a first arm extending transverselyfrom a lower side of the arm base main body, and having a tip end thatpivots around a vertical axis with respect to the arm base main body bythe first driver; a second arm extending transversely from an upper sideof the tip end of the first arm, and having a tip end that pivots arounda vertical axis with respect to the first arm along with the pivoting ofthe first arm; and a substrate holder provided on an upper side of thetip end of the second arm, and configured to hold a substrate and rotatearound a vertical axis with respect to the second arm, therebytransferring the substrate to one of a plurality of stacked processingmodules that process the substrate.
 2. The substrate transfer deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein a base is provided on the upper side ofthe tip end of the second arm to rotate around a vertical axis withrespect to the second arm, and the substrate holder is configured toadvance and retreat with respect to the base on an upper side of thebase.
 3. The substrate transfer device according to claim 2, wherein thesubstrate holder includes a first holder and a second holder arrangedlongitudinally and each configured to hold a single substrate, when anadvancing/retreating direction of the first holder and the second holderis a front-rear direction, a first mover configured to move the firstholder in the front-rear direction and a second mover configured to movethe second holder in the front-rear direction are provided on a leftside and a right side of the base, respectively, inside the base, and afirst connector is provided on only one side of the left and right sidesof the base to connect the first holder to the first mover, and a secondconnector is provided on only a remaining side of the left and rightsides of the base to connect the second holder to the second mover. 4.The substrate transfer device according to claim 2, wherein thesubstrate holder includes absorption holes for absorbing and holding thesubstrate, and a sensor is provided in the second arm to detect a stateof an exhaust path connected to the absorption holes.
 5. The substratetransfer device according to claim 1, wherein the arm base main bodyprotrudes transversely from an upper portion of the slider and isprovided with the first driver, and a proximal end of the first arm isconnected to a lower side of the arm base main body.
 6. The substratetransfer device according to claim 5, wherein a base is provided on theupper side of the tip end of the second arm to rotate around a verticalaxis with respect to the second arm, the substrate holder is configuredto advance and retreat with respect to the base on an upper side of thebase, and the base includes a third driver configured to advance andretreat the substrate holder, the arm base main body, the first arm, andthe second arm include a housing for the arm base main body, a housingfor the first arm, and a housing for the second arm, respectively,configured to accommodate cables connected to the third driver, an upperend of the housing for the second arm and an upper end of the housingfor the arm base main body are positioned at a height equal to or lowerthan an upper end of the slider, and a lower end of the housing for thefirst arm is positioned at a height equal to or higher than a lower endof the slider.
 7. The substrate transfer device according to claim 5,wherein the slider, the arm base main body, the first arm, and thesecond arm include a housing for the slider, a housing for the arm basemain body, a housing for the first arm, and a housing for the secondarm, respectively, a communication path is provided to communicate aninside of the housing for the slider, an inside of the housing for thearm base main body, an inside of the housing for the first arm, and aninside of the housing for the second arm with each other, and a secondexhaust fan is provided in the slider to exhaust the inside of thehousing for the slider, the inside of the housing for the arm base mainbody, the inside of the housing for the first arm, and the inside of thehousing for the second arm, through the communication path.
 8. Thesubstrate transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the stackedprocessing modules form one stacked body and another stacked body thatare transversely separated from each other, and the lift is sandwichedbetween the two stacked bodies.
 9. The substrate transfer deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the stacked processing modules form onestacked body and another stacked body that are arranged side by sidetransversely, and auxiliary facilities of the processing modules areprovided in a manner that the two stacked bodies are sandwiched betweenthe auxiliary facilities in a direction in which the two stacked bodiesare arranged side by side.
 10. A substrate transferring methodcomprising: providing a substrate transfer device including: an arm basemain body provided with a first driver; a lift configured to move up anddown the arm base main body; a first arm extending transversely from alower side of the arm base main body, and having a tip end that pivotsaround a vertical axis with respect to the arm base main body by thefirst driver; a second arm extending transversely from an upper side ofthe tip end of the first arm, and having a tip end that pivots around avertical axis with respect to the first arm along with the pivoting ofthe first arm; and a substrate holder provided on an upper side of thetip end of the second arm, and configured to hold a substrate and rotatearound a vertical axis with respect to the second arm moving up and downthe arm base main body; causing the tip end of the first arm to pivotaround the vertical axis with respect to the arm base main body by thefirst driver; causing the tip end of the second arm to pivot around thevertical axis with respect to the first arm along with the pivoting ofthe first arm; and causing the substrate holder to rotate around thevertical axis with respect to the second arm, thereby transferring thesubstrate to one of a plurality of stacked processing modules thatprocess the substrate.